Holding You
by ForeverAStarkid
Summary: Team Starkid/Breredith AU where Brian is a star on Glee and Meredith is a tumblr fangirl. Rated M for smut in later chapters.
1. Chapter 1

_**AN: Okay I know I'm uploading this on a Tuesday but I'm going to try to update every Friday/Saturday if I can :)**_

Meredith pushed a piece of her long, curly brown hair behind her ear as she scrolled through her dash, sighing every time she saw a picture of Brian. His light brown hair and bright green eyes just drove her crazy. She was ecstatic that she would finally get to go to one of his concerts the next day. And he would be doing a couple more in her area, which she was going to try to sneak into if she could.

"You beautiful asshole," she muttered, staring longingly at her laptop screen. She reblogged the picture and continued to scroll. She minimized the tab and opened her unfinished fanfiction.

_Darren groaned as Brian pushed against him, breathing heavily. He ground against him, fumbling with the button of his jeans. He felt it come undone and it wasn't long before he had Brian completely undressed with his-_

Meredith felt her phone vibrate and lazily picked it up, unlocking it and smiling as she read the text.

_Deeds: How's the fanfic?_

_Meredith: I'm working on it now_

_Deeds: Are they having sexay timez yet?_

_Meredith: Maybe :P Hehe. _

_Deeds: I don't understand how you write smut, it's so awkward!_

_Meredith: Well, when you read as much gay smut as I do, it gets pretty easy. Hey, I have to go, I need to go pretend to be sick and call in so I can go to the concert tomorrow. Don't forget, be here at 4 so we can get there early. Bye!_

_Deeds: Omg Mere. And okay, bye!_

Meredith put her phone down. She coughed a few times, doing her best to sound sick before dialing her boss's phone number.

"Hey, I can't come in tomorrow, I uh, I kinda threw up and * cough cough * I'm not feeling well." She said, making her voice sound nasally.

"Okay, just come in when you're feeling better," her boss replied, sounding distracted.

"Okay, I'll see you as soon as I can," Meredith replied, smiling in success. She set her phone on her nightstand, pulling her laptop onto her lap as she leaned against the wall. She got on tumblr, refreshing her dash and squealing when she saw that she had a message from someone in her inbox. She clicked on it and saw that it was from Lauren. She laughed when she saw that it was about her not tagging her spoilers while she watched the new episode of _Glee. It's because tagging stuff is too difficult when you're obsessing over Brian Holden's perfection! _She typed, hitting send.

Meredith checked the time, groaning. It was only 5:30, which meant she still had to wait twenty-four and a half hours until the concert. She had VIP tickets and would get to take pictures with Brian and get his autograph. She would get the same opportunities with Darren too, whom she also loved, but Brian was who she really wanted to see. It definitely wasn't cheap, but getting to meet Brian Holden and Darren Criss was totally worth it to her.

"Why can't it just be tomorrow already?" she sighed in exasperation. "I'm hungry," she thought aloud, getting up and walking to the kitchen. She opened the fridge, leaning on the door and looking inside boredly.

"Why do I never have food?!" she exclaimed before walking to the cupboard and grabbing the jar of nutella that she kept for emergencies, which basically meant any time she couldn't find something else first. She got a spoon and went back to her room, taking a bite and smiling at the taste. She turned on her ipod, playing music from her favorite show, _Glee. _

She refreshed her dash, squealing slightly when she saw that she had gained a couple followers, bringing her up to 1,957. She didn't consider her blog popular, although some people would. She really didn't understand how she had even gotten past 100 followers, she just liked and reblogged things she liked and spent all of her free time in bed, on tumblr. Nonetheless, it made her happy that so many people liked what she did. And as she fell asleep a few hours later with her laptop laying next to her, she was smiling, thinking about how grateful she was and full of excitement for the next day.


	2. Chapter 2

_**AN: I just realized I never mentioned where they are. They're in Chicago, just so you know. **_

"Shut upppp," Meredith groaned groggily as her alarm continued to piss her off. She had forgotten to turn it off last night, since she didn't have to work. She sleepily lifted her head, reaching over and turning it off before looking at the time. Six o'clock in the morning. She groaned again, letting her head fall back onto her pillow. About 30 seconds later, her head shot up and a huge grin shone across her face when she remembered that today was the day.

"I'M GOING TO MEET MY HUSBAND TODAY!" she screamed as she jumped out of bed and ran to the bathroom to get ready. She turned on the shower, took off her clothes, and was about to get inside when she remembered music. Meredith ran to her room, hoping that none of her neighbors happened to be looking through the windows.

She took her time as she washed her hair, body, and face, and even shaving. She brushed her teeth, applied deodorant, and pulled out the huge bag of nail polish that she never used. It took her about 20 minutes to pick the perfect color, a greenish-blue, which was Brian's favorite. She carefully painted each nail, trying to make them perfect for Brian. After about 45 minutes of that, there was the matter of her outfit. It was almost 8, so she still had plenty of time.

She decided on a plain white tank top, with a multicolored plaid scarf and dark jean capris. She let her curls flow free, only pulling back part of the top so that it wouldn't be in her face. She took a picture and sent it to Denise, receiving a phone call in response.

"DENISE I'M SO EXCITED IT'S FINALLY HERE I'M GONNA MEET MY HUSBAND OH MY GOD!" Meredith practically screamed into the phone.

"I KNOW I'M EXCITED TOO! AND YOU LOOK GREAT!" Denise replied.

They talked for a while to pass the time, then said goodbye so they could both finish getting ready. Meredith got her bag and dumped it out onto her bed. It was originally white, but ever since she had gotten it it had been covered with quotes, signatures, and pins from friends and fandom-related things.

Loose change, some lint, her wallet, and various other items fell out of it. She put the loose change in a jar that sat on her dresser, and put her wallet back inside the back after checking how much cash was in it. She knew she would need to go to the ATM anyway. Wiping the lint off of her bed and onto the floor, she got a medium sized notepad and various pens, dropping the notepad inside her bag and clipping the pens on the side so that they were organized for autographs. She also got her camera in case her phone died, body spray, and a small jacket just in case, tossing them inside the bag as well.

"Okay, I think I'm ready," Meredith said to herself, smiling, giddy. She checked the time and saw that it was nearly 9:30. Eight and a half hours left, and Denise would be at her house in six and a half hours. She was so excited, she could barely contain it. She would finally get to see Brian Holden for real, instead of just pictures, gifs, videos, movies, or tv shows.

She sat down on her bed, pulling her laptop over to her and turning it on. She got on tumblr, hoping it would help pass the time until the concert.

"Darren, stop leaving your shit all over the floor!" Brian said, getting up after tripping over one of Darren's shirts that he always left lying around the tour bus. He, Darren, Joe, Dylan, and A.J. shared the bus, and it was always a mess. Charlene, Devin, Elona, and Julia, their manager, shared the other tour bus and whenever they came over to the guy's bus they would constantly complain about the weird smells and dirty laundry everywhere.

He grabbed the couch as the bus came roughly to a halt in front of the venue. He heard the bus driver shout, "We're here!" and stood up straight, quickly getting out of the bus. He got a little stir crazy if he was in there for too long, and he hated it, but he also loved being on tour.

Brian looked around at where he was, checking out the venue they would be playing at the next few nights. He began helping the others move all of the equipment inside and onto the stage. They set it all up, even though they had a couple hours before they would have to actually be ready for the concert that night. He was about to go for a walk in the nearby park when he heard Julia call for him, saying that he couldn't leave because she had errands to run and he was coming with her whether he liked it or not. He groaned before turning around and walking towards her, planning on going to the park tomorrow because it looked fun.


	3. Chapter 3

_**AN: Okay, this chapter is about twice as long as the other two. Hopefully the rest of the chapters will be around this length, I guess we'll see :) Also this is the third chapter in five days oops I'm not good at keeping routines like I haven't even started it and I already fucked up. I won't be updating next week though because I'll be on vacation so I guess this makes up for it in advance.**_

Meredith and Denise had been, unsurprisingly, the first ones to the concert, and were now the first in line for the meet and greet. There were only about twenty-eight others behind them, and they had about an hour and a half before sound check for the actual concert. They would get their pictures taken and autographs with Brian Holden, Darren Criss, Joe Walker, Charlene Kaye, Devin Lytle, A.J. Holmes, Dylan Saunders, and Elona Finlay. Denise had let Meredith go first, knowing how badly she wanted this.

"Okay, come on in!" the stars' manager Julia said, beckoning Meredith forward. She walked inside and instantly tears began to stream down her face. She hadn't put on make up, knowing this was going to inevitably happen. They were all together for a group picture first, then individuals.

"Hey! Thanks for coming, we really appreciate it!" Charlene said, probably used to fans crying upon meeting all of them. Meredith wiped the tears from her face and calmed down enough to get a great picture with all of them. She got pictures and autographs from everyone else, and then Brian was last.

"I really like your bag, it's cool!" he told her and she just stared at him in awe, and he signed her notebook and her bag before they took the picture. He gave her a one armed hug before she walked away and she turned to see several other people getting their pictures and autographs. She met Denise after she was done and they walked outside, both breaking down into tears.

"Th-they're real!" Meredith choked out between sobs. "I TOUCHED BRIAN!" she half-yelled. They calmed down as more people exited the room, most of them emotional but barely any of them crying like they were. They sat down in Meredith's car, calming down and looking at their pictures with all of them. They went inside the venue, sitting down outside the concert doors until they could go in.

They cried several times during the concert, and were happy to know that they weren't the only fans of _Glee _that were over twenty years old. They had third row seats, and they could practically feel the jealously radiating off of everyone behind them, but mostly everyone was just happy to be there. While they were there, they each bought a t shirt and a poster or two, going home extremely happy. They dreaded the post-concert depression, but it was definitely worth it.

Brian was barely tired after the concert. He and Darren got on the bus, sitting down on the couch in the cramped living area and he pulled out his laptop. Sometimes they liked to get on tumblr to see what fans were up to. They knew that a lot of them shipped them, but they also shipped them with a lot of the others. That's what you had to deal with when you were on a popular tv show. They followed a lot of fan blogs, but no one ever knew it was them because they went by different names on there. They were actually friends with a couple fans, but never told them the truth about who they were. They liked it that way because after being surrounded by screaming fans, it was nice to have some friends to talk to that they weren't around 24/7. They scrolled through their dash for a little while, reblogging a couple of their favorite posts, and eventually went to bed.

The next morning Brian woke up around noon, and everyone else was still asleep. He quietly exited the bus, putting on a hat and a pair of sunglasses to make it harder for anyone to recognize him and walking over to the park he had wanted to go to yesterday. It was empty, all the kids at school and adults at work right now. He walked aimlessly around for a few minutes when he heard something. He walked closer to where he thought it was coming from and realized as he neared it that it was a girl singing on a bench.

_Holding you, makes me forget the things that I'm supposed to do_

_Get up and go to work but I always do_

_I should have stayed while I was holding you_

_Getting tired, but just one word from you and I feel inspired_

_Open me up to all of life's grand desires_

_I should have stayed while I was being admired_

_Holding you, is all I'm thinking about _

_Holding you, don't feel like going out_

_Holding you, I think I'll just stay here with you a little while, a little while_

She stopped singing, tucking a piece of curly brown hair behind her ear and sighing, seeming a little upset about something but also happy, as if remembering something.

"Hey, can I sit here?" Brian asked quietly.

"Oh, sure," she replied, slightly startled.

"You have a really nice voice," he told her, and she blushed.

"Thanks," she said, grinning at him,"My name's Meredith."

"I'm Brian," he said, taking off his sunglasses and hat. She looked like she was about to scream. He remembered her from last night, and just chuckled. "Did you write that song yourself? I've never heard it before."

"O-oh, m-m-my god," Meredith stuttered, breathing heavily. "Y-yeah, I did," she replied calming down. She still seemed like she was in shock, but he understood. She had been at the meet and greet, and had had third row tickets, so she was obviously a huge fan.

"It's really good. And like I said, you have a really nice voice." She just smiled at him again, unsure of what to say. She seemed really nice, and she was also very pretty. He wanted to know more about her. "Would you want to hangout some time? I'll be here for a few more days, but then we're leaving," he asked.

"That would be amazing," Meredith replied, not believing what was happening to her. "I'm not busy right now, if you want. I have to work tomorrow and the day after that, so, yeah."

"Okay, where do you want to go? You know more about this place than I do," Brian asked. They walked over to a small cafe that wasn't very busy. Meredith got tea and he got coffee, and they both sat down at a small booth near the back.

"What did you think of the concert last night?" he inquired as they sipped their drinks.

"It was great. I had a lot of fun, and it was amazing meeting everyone," Meredith replied.

"That's good," Brian said passively, taking a drink of his coffee. He had no idea what to say now.

"You're really not used to talking to girls, are you?" she asked with a chuckle. She had noticed that he wasn't really say anything and looked slightly nervous. "You're so used to girls just screaming at you all the time and knowing everything about you before you even meet them. You probably don't do this very much at all."

"Am I really that easy to read?" Brian asked, laughing.

"It's pretty obvious," she responded, and now they were both laughing, causing a few of the others in the small restaurant to give them odd looks. "So, why exactly did you ask me, of all people, out? I mean it's not like you don't have tons of pretty, talented, and famous girls to choose from."

"What do you mean? You're pretty and talented, why wouldn't I want to go on a date with you?" he asked in return. Meredith froze. So she was on a date with the man of her dreams. Did this mean that they were going out now? She was confused but definitely not complaining. As of right now, the odds were in her favor. A huge grin crept onto her face. She took his hand in hers, blushing as she did so.

"You know, I would really like to do this again some time. If you're not too busy with touring," she said, looking up at him. She pulled a pen out of her purse and used her free hand to write down her phone number on a napkin.

"I would love to," Brian replied, taking the napkin and putting it in his pocket. He gave her his in return, and she could tell that she wasn't just any fan to him anymore. But he was also more than the famous glee star Brian Holden to her now. He was Brian, the nice, sarcastic, silly guy that thought she was pretty and talented. They finished their drinks and he put his hat and sunglasses back on as they left the cafe. They walked through the park and to the tour buses.

"Brian! Where the hell have you been? And who's that?" Julia said exasperatedly as she walked up to them.

"Well, I went for a walk in the park and Meredith and I just went on a date," he replied, looking nervous. He wasn't sure how Julia was going to react to him going on a date, she always freaked out about them doing things that could start rumors.

"Did anyone see you together?" she asked with an anxious sigh.

"Uh, I don't think so," he said. Julia groaned and walked away. "I'll text you soon, alright? I have to start getting ready for the concert tonight soon or Julia'll kill me," Brian told her with a chuckle.

"Okay then," Meredith replied with a giggle. "I'll see you soon," she said as she smiled at him one last time and began walking towards her apartment building. She went home, thinking that this had to have been just one amazing dream and that she was going to wake up disappointed. But for now, she was going to enjoy the hell out of it.


	4. Chapter 4

_**AN: I have no excuse for how late this chapter is. Oops. But I attempted to make up for it with really cute fluff so enjoy!**_

"That was the best dream I have ever had," Meredith murmured as she awoke the next morning. It was Saturday so she didn't have to work. She went into the small living room, curling up on the couch with her laptop and _Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone _playing on the TV. She opened tumblr, clicking on the 'Brian Holden' tag.

"Who do you think that chick is? I've never seen her before"

"Whoever that girl is, she's a bitch for dating him. HE'S MINE!"

"Omg they're so cute together I can't wait to find out their ship name"

Meredith was confused. Who were they talking about? She kept scrolling and that was when she saw it. It was the cover of a magazine, and she and Brian were on it, holding hands on their way back to the tour buses. She shakily pulled the napkin out of her pocket, his phone number written on it. The dream had been real, and she felt amazing. But what was she supposed to do now? She felt that if she texted or called him now, it would be too early and he would think she was clingy. She didn't have to think about it any more though, because right after that she received two texts from Brian.

"Hey, would you maybe want to do something today? It's Brian, by the way."

"Wait, is that too forward? Too soon? Forget I asked."

She laughed, happy that at least they were both thinking the same thing about this. But they also both wanted to hang out again, which made her ecstatic. Whatever this was, it had started off way better than any other relationship she had ever had.

"Haha no it's fine, I would love to do something. Wanna come over and watch a movie?" she texted back, sitting her phone down next to her as she waited for a response.

"Sure. I'll be there soon."

Meredith smiled to herself, texting him her address before jumping up to get her apartment ready.

When Brian arrived, everything was spotless. Meredith had cleaned up the random garbage, wiped down the counters and tables, vacuumed, made popcorn, and thrown her favorite comforter and pillows onto the couch. She was wearing her favorite pair of pajama pants and a light blue tank top when she opened the door, grinning at him.

"Hey! Come on in, there's a stack of movies by the couch. Pick whichever one you want," she told him as he walked inside, looking around the small but now very clean living room. To Brian it felt very homey, it was the closest he'd come to being back in his apartment with Darren in a couple months. It felt nice.

"Are you sure? I mean, it is your apartment, you should pick the movie," Brian replied. Meredith suppressed the urge to squeal; he was such a gentleman sometimes.

"No, you're the guest. You pick," she said, sitting down on the couch and crossing her legs, taking part of the comforter and tucking it around her shoulders. He looked at the movies, noticing the Lord of the Rings box set in mint condition. It wasn't hard to infer that it was her favorite compared to the less glamorous looking cases.

"How about...this one?" he asked, holding up the first movie. Her wide grin was the only answer he needed before popping it into the dvd player and turning on the tv. He sat down on the couch next to her, pulling the other side of the blanket around him and kicking off his shoes before tucking his feet beneath him. "This blanket isn't very big, is it?" he said, scooting closer to her.

_You sneaky bastard, _Meredith thought with a smirk.

"No, it's not," she agreed, closing the small gap between them and resting her head on his shoulder. She closed her eyes, enjoying the peaceful music as the movie began. She already knew every single word, she didn't even have to look at the screen. Instead she looked subtlety at Brian, admiring his beautiful green eyes that contrasted with his pale skin and brown hair. Her heart fluttered every time he stole a glance at her, thinking she wasn't looking and hadn't noticed.

But how could she not notice? Here she was, curled up on the couch watching one of her favorite movies with the guy she'd been thinking and dreaming about for months. It felt too surreal. No, it was definitely real. If it was a dream she would have woken up by now. But on the off chance that it was a dream, she hoped she never woke up. She sighed happily and felt his arm slip around her waist.

As the movie continued to play, and neither of them said anything, Meredith began to think. Every fangirl dreams of this happening to them, hopes and prays for it, hell, some are even willing to sell their soul for it. Yet here she was, and it was nothing like she had imagined. Sure, she had been plenty star-struck at first, but while they were in that cafe, it was like she was with a completely different, more sincere person than she had pictured. He was no longer Brian, the star from Glee. He was Brian, the guy that texted her first and watched her favorite movie with her while they cuddled under a blanket.

"You know, you're the only guy that's every texted me first after a date," Meredith said quietly after a little while.

"Really? That doesn't seem right. Every guy should be beating down your front door just to see you," Brian replied, and she felt light-headed from how overwhelmed that made her feel. She hugged him tightly, laying her head on his chest as a few tears streamed down her face.

"Meredith, what's wrong?" he asked, concerned as he felt the tears on his shirt.

"Stuff like this never happens to me. You're the most amazing guy I've ever met, and you're the only person that's ever said something like that to me," she replied, looking up at him. He was speechless. She felt his hand cupping her cheek and the next thing she knew his lips were pressed against hers, and her breath hitched in her throat. He pulled away after a few seconds and she exhaled slowly.

She sat up, reconnecting their lips as she moved into his lap, her hands on his shoulders. Brian's hands rested against her back, and he responded to her kiss happily.

"Meredith," he groaned as he felt a tug on his bottom lip. She smirked, pulling away and staring at him intently. She sat down, curling up in his lap and resting her head on his chest to continue watching the movie. He pulled the comforter around them, resting his head on top of hers and wrapping his arms around her. They watched the rest of the movie in silence, content smiles plastered across both their faces.


	5. Chapter 5

_**A/N: boom two chapters in one night and tons of cutesy stuff am I forgiven for not updating yet **_

"I have to go. There's a concert tonight, and Julia'll kill me if I'm not at rehearsal on time," Brian said after the movie ended.

"Okay," Meredith replied after sighing dramatically and moving off of his lap.

"Would you want to come? I know you went to the one the other day, but you could come hang out backstage and I could introduce you to everyone," he offered.

"Of course!" she said excitedly, "What time will I need to be there?"

"Well, you could come right now, actually. We could get a cab and ride over together. It'd be cheaper that way," he said, using the cab idea as a way to spend more time with her.

"Uh, okay, just let me get ready first. Wait here," Meredith told him, walking to her room. She pulled her hair up in a ponytail, putting on her sparkly blue shirt that she had bought for no reason but still loved, and a knee-length black skirt with black flats. She put on some light eye shadow, grabbed her purse, and walked out into the living room. "What do you think?" she asked, spinning around.

"Wow...you look...just, wow," Brian replied admiring her.

"Thanks," she said, grinning, "let's go." She took his hand, locking the door behind her as they left the apartment building and hailed a cab. A few minutes later they were at the venue, walking towards the tour buses.

"BRIAN DANIEL HOLDEN, WHAT THE HELL IS THIS?!" Julia yelled as she practically ran up to him, holding up the magazine cover that featured him and Meredith. Meredith instantly felt awkward and unwanted, taking a step back behind Brian.

"Well...," he replied, not really sure what to say in this situation.

"This is why you have to be careful, now people are going to think you're in a relationship and there's going to be all kinds of rumors going around," Julia said with a groan. "Sorry, it's just really frustrating having to manage people who don't care about their reputation, which leaves it to me," she said to Meredith, noticing how nervous she looked. "Be on stage in five minutes," she shot at Brian before walking away.

Brian didn't say anything as he led her inside, guiding her onto the stage where the others where all sitting on the floor in a circle, talking.

"Oh my god I can't believe I'm here with my favorite celebrities I know I sound like a huge crazy fangirl right now but I'm kind of freaking out inside," Meredith whisper-screamed to Brian. He chuckled walking her over to them.

"Just act like yourself. Once you get to know them, they're definitely not as amazing as they seem. And I mean that in the nicest way possible," he told her, which made her laugh.

"Talking about us behind our backs again?" Joe called after them with a smile.

"Who's your friend? Are you trying to replace me?" Darren asked, pretending to be offended.

"Oh, be quiet. No one could ever replace you, Darren, you're special. And this is Meredith," Brian said with a laugh, sitting down next to Darren and motioning for Meredith to sit beside him.

"Uh, hi," she said awkwardly, smiling at the others.

"Brian, isn't this the girl you're on that magazine with?" Elona asked.

"Uh...yeah, long story about that. But not right now. We need to practice before Julia kills us all for being lazy," Brian replied with a smirk. The others laughed, getting up. Meredith moved and sat down on the end of the stage to watch. She could see the chemistry and love between all of them as they worked, making jokes and insiders she didn't really understand, using lingo that she assumed had something to do with whatever they were doing, and most of all, just messing around with each other and acting like little kids half the time.

It was about two hours before the show when Meredith and Brian followed the others into the room they used to the meet and greets.

"Do I just stay here...?" she asked, not sure where to go or what to do. She knew that this is where all the die-hard fans would be, so she would undoubtedly be recognized from the magazine.

"Just stay behind us, but keep close to me so I know where you are. It gets kinda crazy in here with all the fans sometimes," Brian told her. She did as he said, and everything went fine with the first few minutes. Meredith was standing near the exit a few feet away from Brian when she heard a timid voice.

"Hey, uh, could I um, get a picture with you?" the teenage girl asked.

"Uh, sure!" she replied, not wanting to disappoint the girl. They took the picture and the girl asked for her autograph too, which she nervously wrote for her. After that several more people asked for her picture and autograph, which she happily gave them. Then suddenly a girl came up to her, and she looked slightly angry.

"You can look and touch all you want, but he's never going to love you. You're just a pathetic fan he found on the street, and for some reason thought you were kinda cute. You're just his little play-thing until he leaves Chicago, don't expect it to last," the girl told her, and Meredith just stood there, speechless. She was experienced with this kind of hate from the fandom, but it was never directed at her. Her face fell, and the girl walked away, looking triumphant.

"I-I need to go, Brian. I'll wait for you backstage, okay?" she told him, running out the door before he could stop her. She ran backstage, letting herself fall onto the floor before the tears began streaming down her face. Julia must have noticed her quick departure, because within seconds her arm was around Meredith's shoulders.

"Hey, what happened back there?" Julia asked her soothingly. Meredith told her everything that the girl had said, stuttering and slurring some of her words through her feeble sobs.

"Meredith, look at me. That is not true, okay? Believe me. Brian hasn't been on a date for a long time. I knew when I saw you guys walking back the other day that there had to be something really special about you for him to ask you out. I've only been yelling at him about it because he needs to be more careful about his reputation and more considerate. I had a feeling something like this was going to happen. But trust me, he really cares about you, okay? You know that. You don't need other people to accept that for it to be validated. He cares about you, you care about him, and that's all there is to it. It's no one else's business," Julia told her sternly but calmly.

"Thank you so much, Julia," Meredith replied, hugging her tightly and wiping away her tears.

"Anytime. Now let's go get you cleaned up, you've got streaks of eyeshadow all over your cheeks."

Meredith peeked around the curtain as the show started, smiling softly as she watched the crowd practically explode as Brian and the others walked out. It was almost the end of the show when she heard something she never would have expected.

"Okay, we've only got one more song tonight, but first I want to do something. Can Meredith Stepien please come out onto the stage?" Brian called into the microphone. Meredith froze. What on earth was he doing? Her whole body was visibly shaking as she walked out onto the stage. She heard some people cheering, some booing, and some who had no idea what was going on.

"Okay, so I'm guessing most of you have seen that picture of us together," he said while she stood nervously next to him. Two thirds of the crowd shouted "YES!" "So you probably think that we're dating. Well, I just want to get all of that sorted out right now." He turned to face her. "Meredith Stepien, will you be my girlfriend?" The entire crowd was yelling and screaming, and there was an overwhelming amount of people chanting 'yes'.

"Yes," she said shakily into the microphone he was pointing at her. She was grinning and she felt like she could fly. He pulled her into a tight hug, and she instantly relaxed in his arms. He then kissed her tenderly, like he had done for the first time just that afternoon. They were blinded by the flashes of hundreds of cameras, all pointed at them. The others in stage all went 'awwww!', which made Meredith giggle. They pulled apart, and she just couldn't stop smiling. _I wonder how stupid that girl feels right now, _she thought.

"Our last song for the night is Don't Stop Believing!" Darren said, and Meredith was confused when Charlene handed her her microphone.

"This is for you and Brian," Charlene whispered to her. "Don't worry, I know you'll do great. He told me you're an amazing singer."

Meredith gave Brian a look to say 'you were planning this, weren't you', and he just shrugged and gave her a mischievous smirk.

"Just a small town girl," he began, "Livin' in a lonely world. She took the midnight train goin' anywhere." Meredith swallowed her nerves before she began,

"Just a city boy." The crowd was roaring in surprise at her talent, which she didn't even think she had. "Born and raised in South Detroit. He took the midnight train goin' anywhere." They sang the rest of the song, making silly faces at each other as they went. She bowed with the rest of them at the end, waving goodbye to the fans before walking backstage.


	6. Chapter 6

"I can't believe you did that!" Meredith said to Brian incredulously as soon as they were sitting down backstage. She sighed, leaning back against the wall.

"You did great!" he replied.

"That's not the point! You may go out in front of thousands of people and sing and talk all the time, but I don't! That's one of the scariest things I've ever done!" she told him exasperatedly. "...It was kind of fun though," she added after seeing him frown. They all sat and talked for about fifteen minutes before Julia came in.

"Okay, there's tons of fans out there waiting for you guys. I suggest you go outside now before they mob the building," she told them, adding the last part jokingly.

When they got out into the parking lot, Meredith was stunned. There were a couple hundred fans standing in a large group around the tour buses and the door to the building they were coming out of. Luckily, there was security there to make them back off a little bit, but there was still plenty of people shouting there names and holding out notebooks and pictures for autographs. She noticed one person holding up a hastily written sign that said "Brian + Meredith = BREREDITH "

"Look, we already have a ship name," she said with a chuckle to Brian, pointing at the sign. Meredith waved at the girl holding it, and she looked ecstatic that she had gotten a response to it.

Meredith signed autographs and took pictures with the others, and slowly part of the crowd began to leave, either satisfied with their signatures or just tired of waiting. But they were still pretty much surrounded, and there wasn't any way she could leave without getting mobbed or at least followed home.

"Uh, Brian, how the hell am I supposed to get home without getting stalked?" she asked.

"Umm...I don't think you can," he replied with a frown. "I'll go talk to Julia about it," he said, walking away. She couldn't hear what they were saying, but they were both frowning, which wasn't good. "Would you be alright with staying here? Just until tomorrow," he asked.

"Well, I don't have to work tomorrow, so I guess I can," Meredith said with a sigh. Today was definitely not going how she thought it would, which was both good and bad. She would be staying on the girls' bus, and she would have to sleep on the couch in the small living area since there wasn't a spare bunk.

Elona let her borrow a pair of pajama pants and a t shirt to sleep in for the night. Meredith was still internally freaking out about all of this, but after hanging out with them earlier, they weren't really held in such high regards in her head anymore. They were still talented and amazing of course, but now she was their friend, kind of. But there was still that one part of her going '_oh my god I'm wearing Elona's clothes I'm sleeping on the tour bus I sang with them and I'm dating one of them what is air'. _

"Okay, you have to tell us EVERYTHING that's happened with you and Brian!" Devin said as they all were sitting together on the two couches in the living area. Meredith blushed, scooting over to make room for Julia and Elona, who were sitting next to her.

"Well, the other day in the park I was sitting on one of the benches, just singing to myself because I thought I was alone," she began, and they were all watching and listening to her intently. "Then I heard someone behind me ask if they could sit down, and I said sure. I couldn't tell what he looked like, he was wearing a hat and sunglasses. He said I had a really nice voice, and I said thanks and told him my name, and then he said his name was Brian and took off the sunglasses and then I pretty much had a heart attack."

She told them about how she was such a huge fan of all of them, especially Brian, which made them blush. They grinned as she talked about the date at the cafe, and then they were all squealing as she recalled the events of that afternoon. She laughed when she saw them all acting like total fangirls.

"What are you going to do when we have to leave Chicago in a couple days?" Julia asked.

"I...I don't know," Meredith replied with a frown, "I didn't really think about that." She hadn't. What _was _she going to do? It's not like she could come with them, she had a job and responsibilities, and they didn't even have enough room for her on either of the buses (unless she shared a bed with Brian, which was out of the question at this point).

"I'm sure you two will figure something out," Elona said reassuringly, and she half-smiled in return. They talked for a few more minutes before Julia, Elona, Charlene, and Devin went to bed. Meredith laid down on the couch, pulling the small blanket over her and pulled out her phone. She had over thirty texts from Denise and eight missed calls. She laughed quietly and put her phone away, not really wanting to explain everything to her right now. Besides, Denise was probably asleep.

Meredith tossed and turned for a little while, unable to sleep. She ended up laying there staring at the ceiling. Suddenly she heard someone tapping softly on the door to the bus, and got up to go look. She peeked out the window and saw that it was Brian, in nothing but a pair of boxers and a t shirt.

"Brian, what are you doing? Come inside, you'll freeze out there," she said, opening the door and ushering him into the bus.

"Couldn't sleep. And apparently, neither could you," he replied, sitting down on the couch across from where she had been laying.

"So you decided to come over here?" she asked, sitting down and wrapping the blanket around her shoulders.

"I wanted to talk to you," he replied.

"About what?"

"Anything." Meredith smiled softly. She motioned for him to move over there, and he did, pulling her closer to him on one side of the couch.

"We could ask each other questions until we fall asleep," she suggested.

"Okay. Um...what's your middle name?" he asked.

"Elyse. Favorite book series?"

"Well, I can't not say Harry Potter. Favorite movie?"

"Well I saw Lord of the Rings nine times in theaters, so that one's pretty obvious. What's one of your favorite things to do in your free time?"

"Sometimes Darren and I like to get on tumblr and see what the fans are up too, which is pretty entertaining most of the time," Brian replied, pulling Meredith into his lap and turning, leaning back against the armrest and stretching his legs out. Meredith didn't know what to say. She just sat there, wide-eyed. "Let me guess, you have a tumblr, don't you?"

"Uh...yeah...and now I'm really nervous about what you've seen on there," she replied with a light chuckle. "Can you guess my URL?" she asked with a smirk.

"Aw come on, that's not fair! Do I at least get a clue?"

"Okay, it has your name in it," she told him, smiling.

"Oh god, um...brian dash holden maybe?" he asked.

"Nope, but you're kind of on the right track," she said with a mischievous smile. He guessed a couple more times before he finally got it.

"Are you briansfavoriteholden?" he asked.

"Yes! And since you finally guessed it, here's your prize," she replied, turning around and giving him a quick kiss before turning back around. Brian smiled, resting his hands on top of her stomach.

"I've definitely seen your URL a few times. Mostly pictures and text posts, I think," he said.

"Anything else you wanna know about me? I kind of know a lot about you already," she asked, laughing softly.

"Oh, I don't know, just tell me about yourself."

"Okay, well, I have a tattoo of three birds. I'd show you now, but it's too dark. Uh, my best friend is Denise, and she's a huge fan of Glee, too, so she's definitely going to freak out when I explain all this to her. She's texted me about thirty times already, but I haven't said anything to her yet. My nickname is Mere. I love animals. I used to have a crush on Beethoven, but not like I wanted to date him, I just wanted him to play piano with me. When I was little I thought that sex was when you went up to a flower and told it it was beautiful. That's all I can think of right now, I'm kinda tired," Meredith replied, laughing several times while she talked. Eventually, they both drifted off, having happy dreams about bunnies and polar bears and shit. Oh, and each other. Yeah. Cool. Happy stuffs.


	7. Chapter 7

_**A/N: Hey remember how I said I was going to update on Fridays/Saturdays? Yeah fuck that, let's just agree that my writing is erratic and there will be times where I post a few chapters a week, with weeks of nothing in between. Sorry. Also I have the URL briansfavoriteholden saved on tumblr, if you want it just ask. I pretty much only saved it because of this fic. So, yeah, enjoy!**_

Julia yawned as she crawled out of her bunk the next morning. She walked down the hallway and had to suppress an 'Awww!' as she was greeted with the sight of Meredith and Brian curled up on the couch.

"Guys, come here, you have to see this," she whispered, waking the others up.

"What is it?" Devin asked groggily as she sat up, yawning and stretching.

"Shh! Just come here, trust me, you'll wanna see." They all tried their best to be quiet as they smiled at the sight.

"Oh my gosh, they're so cute!" Charlene said. Julia got her phone, taking a few pictures. Suddenly Meredith moved, her eye lids opening slightly. They ran quietly back to their bunks so she wouldn't know that they had been watching them sleep.

At first when Meredith awoke, she was confused. She felt someone behind her, with their arms around her waist. She heard soft snoring that was vaguely recognizable. Slowly, she turned around, causing Brian to wake up.

"Morning," she said quietly, smiling at him with her eyes half-closed from drowsiness. Brian mumbled something in return that sounding vaguely similar. Meredith giggled. "You should probably get back to your bus before you're missed," she said, sitting up and stretching.

"You're probably right," he replied, sitting up and leaning on her shoulder. "Trying to get rid of me so quickly?" he asked jokingly.

"You just woke up and you're still such a troll," she said, laughing. He huffed in an act of mock offense, but then softened when she kissed him on the cheek. He gave her a one-armed hug before walking out of the bus. She folded up the blanket, setting it on the end of the couch. She went into the bathroom to change back into her clothes from last night so she could give Elona her pajamas back, and when she came back Julia was sitting on the couch.

"Sleep well?" Julia asked, smiling kindly.

"Yeah..I did," she replied with a fond smile, thinking about how amazing waking up in Brian's arms felt. She and Julia chatted for a little while before Meredith left, deciding to walk back to her apartment since it was a nice day out. Every now and then, she would notice someone staring at her, which was a weird feeling. She knew it was just because she was dating Brian, but it was still strange to her. Her entire life she had been kind of an outcast, happy with her small group of friends. She wasn't used to being noticed a lot.

She continued her walk home, sometimes waving at the fans she passed, and she even saw a couple people take pictures of her.

"MEREDITH ELYSE STEPIEN!" she heard someone yell as she entered her apartment. Denise was standing in the middle of the living room, her arms crossed.

"Denise, you scared the shit out of me! What the hell?!" Meredith said exasperatedly.

"WHERE HAVE YOU BEEN WHAT WHERE YOU DOING WHY ARE YOU ON THE FRONT OF A MAGAZINE WITH BRIAN HOLDEN WHERE YOU AT THE CONCERT LAST NIGHT PLEASE EXPLAIN BECAUSE I DON'T TRUST TUMBLR!" she continued shouting, her arms waving around wildly. Meredith should have expected this.

"You're joking, right? You have to be kidding. That doesn't just _happen _to people," Denise replied after Meredith explained everything to her. "You're dating Brian Holden for god's sake! That just can't be possible! You slept on the tour bus with him and you wore Elona's clothes and you sang Don't Stop Believing with them at the concert last night MEREDITH DO YOU REALIZE HOW FAMOUS YOU'RE ABOUT TO BE?!"

"Denise! Calm the fuck down! I realize this is a lot for you, but jeez." Suddenly her phone vibrated and she looked down to see a text from Julia.

_Hey, it's Julia. Brian gave me your number. Anyway, I thought you'd like to see these they're the cutest._

Attached were a couple pictures of her and Brian sleeping on the couch. Meredith grinned, showing the picture to Denise.

"Need anymore proof?" she joked. Denise's eyes were wide, she was still in shock with the whole situation. Meredith laughed, adding Julia to her contacts and thanking her for the pictures. "Okay, Denise, I love ya, but I need to shower and change," she said.

"Oh, yeah. Okay, bye! Text me later!" Denise said before hugging her and leaving. Meredith turned on her Glee playlist, stepping into the shower and singing along without even having to think about the lyrics. Afterwords, she put on a tank top and a pair of jean shorts, sitting down on the couch with her laptop to see what the fandom was up to.

Unsurprisingly, they already had a ship name, shippers, edits, blogs dedicated to the ship, and plenty more. But of course, there were still haters.

_She so doesn't deserve him_

_She's not even famous!_

_There's no way this is going to last_

They all said basically the same thing. But the amount of people that shipped them definitely overwhelmed the amount of haters. Meredith was still slightly hurt, though. It wasn't easy knowing that there were plenty of people out there that hated her without even really knowing who she was. She swore not to let it bother her, though. Who were they to judge? Just like Julia said, all that mattered was her and Brian.

She then checked her askbox and realized she had tons of confused and freaked out messages from her friends that didn't know yet. She typed out a long explanation, copying and pasting it into several messages to send to them to avoid further confusion. It was tiring, but easier than having to go over the same story multiple times. She sent them all out and closed tumblr, bored but not sure what to do. She googled pictures of baby ducks and turtles, which was quite entertaining, but just made her desperately wish she had one. _I could text Brian, but he's probably busy, _she thought with a frown.

"Why is there nothing to do?! Is my life seriously this boring without him to fangirl over or hang out with?" she groaned, setting her laptop aside and leaning back, her arms crossed. Suddenly an idea came to mind. She ran back to her room, grabbing her bongos and taking them back into the living room and sitting down with them on the floor.

She began to play, no particular song or rhythm in mind, just letting her hands do as they pleased. She began humming a matching melody in her head, closing her eyes as she just listened to the music. She wondered what Brian was doing.

"Brian?" Julia called as she walked onto the guys' tour bus.

"What? Am I in trouble again? I don't even know what I did this time!" Brian replied, walking down the small hallway.

"No, you're not in trouble, I just need to talk to you about something. It's important," she replied, "sit down."

"Julia, what's this about?" he asked, sitting down on the couch across from her.

"It's about you and Meredith. What are you going to do when we leave here in two days? She can't come with us, and you can't stay behind. I really hope you have some sort of plan for this," she replied, her face showing a hint of worry and concern.

"I..."

"That's what I thought," she said with a sigh. "I don't know how to help you. I can't think of any way this could work out well for both of you. You both have commitments, and I am NOT letting you leave this tour, no matter how important you think your relationship is. Meredith understands that too. I have to, but you need to think of something, and quick," she told him, giving him a quick but loving hug before leaving. Brian sighed, leaning back.

"What the hell do I do?"


	8. Chapter 8

_**A/N: First of all this is what I meant by my writing being erratic. Sometimes I'm just **_**not ****_in the mood to write and then the next thing I know it's been over two weeks since I've updated. But yay here's another chapter let's just focus on that! Also the past 7 chapters have only been over the span of like five days or a week (idek) but I promise soon it'll be a little more spread out and things will be moving a little quicker. _**

"I'm gonna miss you," Meredith murmured into Brian's shoulder as they hugged.

"I'm gonna miss you too, Mere," he replied, hugging her tightly for a few more seconds before pulling away and pecking her lightly on the cheek.

They said their goodbyes, and there were only a few tears shed before he departed for their next tour location. Meredith took a deep breath, sighing before walking back home.

Over the next few days there was lots of discussion on tumblr, along with plenty of rumors.

_Do you think they broke up since he left? _

_Is she going on tour with them now?_

She sighed, continuing to scroll through the breredith tag. She grinned, seeing some cute fanart that someone had made of them. She reblogged it, and decided to post a selfie and a thank you message for all of their awesome fans.

She somewhat tamed her curly hair, taking the picture and posting it with the caption:

"Hey! I've been going through the breredith tag for a little while and I just wanna say that I'm sooo jealous of your fanart skills omg. Also thanks for being awesome :)" Within seconds she got a huge reaction from several people. Someone reblogged it and added "holy shit are you meredith stepien? as in you're daTING BRIAN HOLDEN?!" She replied and said "haha yeah! Hi :)"

For the next few minutes, the picture gradually got more and more notes, with tons of people freaking out that "MEREDITH STEPIEN HAS A TUMBLR ASDFGHJKL;" The next thing she knew her selfie had thousands of notes and she had gained a few hundred followers, all within about half an hour. She called Denise, not sure what to do.

"Denise, I did a thing and I'm not sure if it was a good thing or a bad thing," she said as soon as she picked up.

"Wait, what did you do?"

"I posted a selfie on tumblr and tons of people recognized me and now all of my posts are becoming popular and I keep seeing cool edits of my selfies and collages and I've gained like a thousand followers WHAT DO I DO?!"

"Oh my god Meredith that's AMAZING!"

"DENISE!"

"Oh. Right. Sorry. I don't know, enjoy it? I mean how often does this happen to people? Use it to your advantage, try to make something good out of it. That's the best advice I have for you." Meredith sighed.

"Thanks. I have to go now, I have over a hundred messages to answer." And she did. Ever since her tumblr exploded, people had been constantly sending her asks, and until now, she hadn't bothered with any of them.

_Are you really Meredith? _Yep, always have been, always will be. Although the last name might change ;)

_Are you and Brian still together? Please say yes! _Yes! He's gone on tour for now though, so I guess things are kinda on hold for us for a little while. But he should be back soon! :)

_You're such a fake, just stop. I don't know where you're getting those pictures of her from, but you're obviously not her. Fuck off. _

Meredith was shocked, and angry. She wanted to scream at whoever sent her that. How could they?! As if she wasn't herself. Ignorant asshole. She deleted the message, and there were only a couple other like it. She ignored them.

The next couple weeks passed by slowly. She kept running into fans, and a few even asked her about her blog. She told them all the truth, and for the most part, she was left alone. She started getting stressed with work and fans, and whatever was going on with her and Brian. They texted each other all the time, talking about how things were going, fun things that had happened to them, stuff like that. Sometimes Brian would call her if he had the chance, and they would end up talking for a couple hours until one of them was too tired to continue.

She was curious when she came home from work Friday night to find a rose taped to her door. She walked inside, and the first thing she saw was Brian sitting on the couch, a blanket spread out next to him, and Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows part 1 on the tv.

"Brian!" Meredith yelled, thoughtlessly dropping her purse on the floor and shutting the door, running over to him. She kicked off her shoes, hugging him tightly.

"Hey Meredith," Brian said, his head resting on her shoulder as she hugged him.

"What are you doing here? The tour isn't over for a couple more weeks," she asked, pulling away and sitting down next to him, his arm circling around her waist.

"Well, technically, I still am on tour, but I wanted to see you. I missed you," he replied.

"I missed you, too. How long are you staying?"

"Just a day or two, then I have a show in New York," he replied with a sigh.

"Well, I'm glad you're here. And I have the whole weekend to do fun stuff with you," she said, kissing him on the cheek and starting to watch the movie.

"That sounds amazing," Brian said, mostly to himself.

They sat there curled up together while they watched, and Brian laughed quietly every time he saw Meredith mouthing all of the words. Being back with her felt amazing, and right. He kept thinking about his feelings for the rest of the movie, trying to decide what he should do about them.

"Hey, Meredith..," he began after the movie ended and they were sitting in silence, "how would you feel about...me staying here tonight?" He mentally kicked himself for not being able to ask her.

"Uh, sure," she replied with a smile. "Want something to eat? I was thinking about ordering pizza," she said, standing up slowly.

"Okay," he replied. "I don't really care what's on it, as long as it's good pizza," he added with a chuckle. She ordered the pizza, and while she was doing that Brian tried to find pillows and blankets. He tossed them onto the couch and walked into the kitchen where Meredith was standing.

"They said it'll be about forty-five minutes," she told him.

"So that gives me plenty of time to do this," he said, putting his hand on the counter and pressing his lips to hers, grinning as he felt her body mold to his, her hands going to his hair as he gently tugged on her lip with his teeth. He was gentle and caring, and Meredith sighed, leaning back and looking at him. She giggled nervously, not really sure what to do or say. Suddenly an idea came to mind, and she ran towards the living room.

"Mere...?" Brian said, caught off guard and chasing after her.

"Let's build a blanket fort," she said, already starting to unfold a blanket. "I haven't been able to do this in years! Come on." She wasn't going to take no for an answer.

"Okay, that sound fun," he replied, laughing and starting to think about how it was going to work.

Time flew by, and before they knew it they were laying down under a canopy of sheets, surrounded by makeshift blanket walls, only a small flap near the front to let them out. Suddenly they heard a knock on the door.

"Food!" Meredith exclaimed, rushing out of the tent towards the door, Brian following behind. She pulls her wallet out of her purse, but by the time she has her money ready Brian is holding the pizza and shutting the door as the pizza guy walks away.

"You didn't have to pay for it," she says.

"No, but I wanted to." He smiles at her, pecking her on the cheek and opening the box. She gets two plates, and they happily begin to eat, smiling at each other. After that, they changed into pajamas, and decided to sleep in the blanket fort that took up almost the entire living room. They also strung old Christmas lights along the outside of it, creating a soft glow inside.

Meredith sighed happily as they laid in silence, the ambient light setting the mood for a peaceful night. She took a picture of the two of them on her phone, posting it with the caption _'Surprise visit from the bf! Haha we made a blanket fort in my living room. Fun timez :) x' _

She put her phone down, turning to face Brian. She gently pressed her lips to his, playing with his hair with one hand and resting the other on his side. He deepened the kiss and wrapped his arm around her waist to pull her closer to him. She felt his hand sliding up her shirt, rubbing her back gently and going no farther. She pulled away and smiled, resting her head on his chest and closing her eyes. He pulled the blanket up, tucking it around her. A few minutes later, they were both sleeping soundly.


	9. Chapter 9

"Come with me," Brian said, staring at Meredith intently.

"What?" she replied, her eyes wide.

"Come with me, on tour. We have room on the buses and you could perform with us-"

"Brian, I can't. I just can't." She could hear her voice shaking.

"What do you mean you can't?" He looks upset at her response.

"I mean that I can't just drop everything and go with you! I have a job, Brian, a real job with a boss and a paycheck every week and responsibilities that I can't just leave behind. You have it easy, you don't understand," she practically yells. She'd been holding in all these feelings for over a week, and now she felt like she was going to explode.

"Meredith..."

"Look I know you're upset, and I would come with you in a heartbeat if I could, but it's not like that. Do you have any idea how hard it is for me to say no to you? I'm stuck here and you're out there having the time of your life, and it hurts. And I've got fans coming at me all the time asking about us and it's so hard for me not to burst into tears in front of them because I miss you so damn much. I'm sorry, but that's how it has to be." She sighs, leaning back in her chair and closing her eyes, feeling angry and upset.

"You're right...," Brian replies with a long sigh, "You know what...maybe...this just isn't going to work out right. I'm sorry that I've hurt you like that, believe me, that was never what I wanted. I promise that I won't cause anymore trouble for you. Goodbye, Meredith." He got up, practically running out the door. She thought she could see tears in his eyes, and almost went after him, but stayed. She felt numb inside, and there were tears on her face but she wasn't crying.

"I'm such an idiot," Brian murmured to himself, sitting on a bench while he cried silently.

"Are...Are you Brian Holden?!" There was a young girl standing in front of him, and when he looked up she got excited, and then worried. "Why are you crying?" she asked, sounding sincere.

"It's nothing," he replied, wiping his eyes and taking a deep breath, smiling weakly.

"Did something happen with Meredith? I mean, she's the only reason you'd be here right now. You're supposed to be in New York." He chuckled. He would never get used to people knowing so much about his life.

"Yeah. I screwed up, and I think I just broke up with her."

"WHAT?!" she practically yelled, looking at him in shock. "Well, I'm really really sorry. Um...could I get a picture?"

"Sure." She pulled out her phone and took the picture, thanking him and hugging him before walking away.

When he got back to New York, he was bombarded with questions. He left them all unanswered, just saying that he wanted to be left alone and going to his bunk.

Meredith rolled her eyes the next day as she saw the breakup rumors. How the hell did they find out about things so fast?! She didn't confirm any of them, mostly because she wasn't even sure if they were broken up. Considering what had happened, she was pretty sure that they were.

Denise came by later, having heard the rumors. She'd had a feeling that they were true, and brought ice cream.

"Maybe you're better off without him," she said.

"Maybe...but I really miss him. I thought that I knew him, but then I actually met him, and it was like getting to know him all over again. He was still the same person I thought he was, but at the same time he was really different. A good different. I'm not gonna say that I love him, because I haven't really known him long enough for that, but I do know that I care about him and is it totally crazy for me to say that not being with him and him being gone is worse than being with him while he's gone?"

"Meredith, all I can say is that you should do what feels right because all that really matters in life is whether or not you're happy, and if you're not happy with your life, then what's the point?"

"You're right, as usual." She groaned. "I guess now I have to do something about it. Which means I have to drive to New York."

"Well, I guess you better start packing then," Denise replied with a smile.

"I can't believe that I'm doing this," Meredith said as she packed a suitcase full of clothes and whatever else she would need.

"It'll be fun! And you'll get to spend more time with your amazing celebrity boyfriend," Denise said with a chuckle.

"Hold on," she said, calling her boss to leave a message. "Hey, it's Meredith, I have to take care of..family business, so I'll be out for a few days. Bye!"

"Family business?" Denise asked.

"Well, it's not totally a lie, if everything works out then eventually Brian will be part of my family," Meredith replied with a smirk. Denise laughed, and helped her pack the rest of her things. She carried her two suitcases out to her car, tossing them in the backseat.

"Good luck. Everything's gonna work out, I know it will," Denise said as she hugged Meredith.

"Thanks, I really hope so, or this is all for nothing. Bye!" She got inside the car and started to drive, her GPS already beginning to annoy her. "This is gonna be a really long drive..," she muttered.

After over eleven hours of driving, she was exhausted. She quietly parked her car about a block away from the hotel they were staying at. They was a small group of fans outside the door, and they freaked out when they saw here walking over. She took pictures with them and gave out autographs, but wouldn't answer any of their questions.

_Meredith: Hey, what room is Brian in? I'm outside the hotel now._

_Julia: What do you mean you're outside the hotel? _

_Meredith: I need to fix things. _

_Julia: What happened? Brian wouldn't tell us anything._

_Meredith: Brian and I are kind of broken up at the moment._

_Julia: 3rd floor, room 15._


End file.
